Last week, FSC’s Jerry Bachar was accompanied by members of the Des Moines Fire Department during a site visit of the DSM’s new Phase 1A/1BW terminal. During this visit, Jerry gave members of the department a behind-the-scenes walkthrough of the building’s fire protection systems FSC designed. This led to a great conversation about fire department tactical response, engagement protocols with airport security during a fire emergency, and how building evacuations could be handled.
Each of these items were addressed early in the design phase through close coordination with Fire Marshal Jeremy Eekhoff, resulting in a terminal building that’s not only state-of-the-art, but safe and protected. Although he was unable to join the site visit, Eekhoff played an instrumental role on the project.
Of course, the work to protect terminal occupants and property won’t stop once the building is complete. Walking through the building, fire department personnel were struck by its scale and complexity. They noted that each company responsible for responding to the airport—and possibly the fire department itself—will need to conduct initial and regular walkthroughs of the building to become familiar with the heavily-mazed building.
As the new terminal’s completion is finally on the horizon, FSC is honored to have been a part of this challenging project on such a strong team, with HNTB and BNIM leading the design, and WTJV leading construction. Throughout this project, the team has forged a great working relationship with the Des Moines Fire Department. We’ve appreciated the professionalism they’ve shown every step of the way.
Interested in learning more about FSC’s airport experience? Visit our aviation portfolio to see similar projects.